Started Mid-Career, Grew to $38m in 3 Years | Shaun Stimpson Interview

Shaun Stimpson was mid-career in wealth management when a client mentioned making money by buying companies. That conversation changed Shaun’s path. He spent five years studying acquisitions and, in December 2022, bought Mitten Fluidpower, an industrial distribution business.
Since then, he has grown that company and acquired two others, building a portfolio with $38 million in revenue. Shaun shares how he structures ownership with his partner and investors, and why he focused on industrial distribution—a category many peers overlooked in favor of tech.
His story shows that acquisition entrepreneurship can be a powerful second career. Shaun didn’t consider it until age 39, then studied for five years before searching for 18 months. By his mid-forties, he had bought his first business. From there, momentum built quickly: zero to $38 million in under three years. Here he is: Shaun Stimpson, CEO of Mitten Fluidpower, FLN-MAR Rubber & Plastics, and Frank Murken Products.

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00:00 Shaun's 20-year wealth management background and sales-focused career experience
04:12 Pivotal lunch meeting that introduced private equity and sparked search interest
12:00 Taking finance courses at Babson to develop modeling and deal structure skills
21:40 Choosing industrial distribution thesis based on aging owners and succession gaps
33:05 Cold calling strategy that yielded 25% response rate from 1,200 calls
48:07 Mitten acquisition details: $14M revenue company with unique deal structure
01:02:00 Two additional acquisitions growing combined revenue to $38M in three years
01:15:52 Long-term vision to build $100M+ business over 20-25 years without exit
01:23:48 Successful capital raising through LinkedIn network and investor relationships
01:26:05 Why search felt less risky than corporate America's single-customer concentration

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ABOUT Acquiring Minds
Acquiring Minds is a podcast about buying businesses. Acquiring an existing business is an awesome opportunity for many entrepreneurs, and host Will Smith talks to the people who do it. New episodes 2x per week.

Credits:
Edited by Anton Rohozov
Produced by Pam Cameron

#business #acquisitions #buyingbusiness